To the community,

I would like to commend the students who participated in the event the “Last Straw” because they are creating awareness as middle school students.

It would be great if the students that are involved in the Sierra Watershed Education Program (SWEP) could be more involved with the college students here at SNC to give them more opportunities to get their ideas out into the community more. They are currently working with IVGID which is a start to making Incline Village a better place. If the students that have been spearheading the Outreach program continue to create awareness in the community, the community can help those who enter such as tourists, this summer season to be “straw smart.”

We should help this movement become just as powerful as the saying of “Keep Tahoe Blue.” 

During the summer, Incline Village and Kings Beach become a hot spot for summer fun on the lakefront. We as locals in the community are the ones who have to deal with the aftermath of all the trash and excess litter.

If we can downsize the amount of plastic being littered around the lake by just reducing the straw usage, the lake can be a much cleaner and more respected place to be viewed as a get-a-way not a party scene.

Gavin Ryan-Massa, junior at Sierra Nevada College